Stamp Duty in Maharashtra: Rates, Metro Cess, Fees
Stamp duty in Maharashtra is 6% in Mumbai and 7% in Pune, Thane, Navi Mumbai and Nagpur for a male buyer, both figures including the 1% metro cess. A woman buying a home in her own name pays 1% less. The registration fee is 1% of value, capped at Rs 30,000. Duty is charged on the agreement value or the ready reckoner value, whichever is higher.
Key takeaways
- Mumbai is 5% plus 1% metro cess; the other big corporations add a further 1% local body surcharge, which is why Pune costs more than Mumbai in percentage terms.
- The women's 1% concession covers residential property bought by a woman alone. The 15-year bar on reselling to a man was removed on 31 May 2023.
- The registration fee stops at Rs 30,000, so above Rs 30 lakh it is a flat cost.
- Ready reckoner rates were frozen for 2026-27 after a 4.39% average rise in 2025-26.
- For a new flat, full duty is paid on the agreement for sale, not on the later conveyance.
How the Maharashtra rate is built
The Maharashtra Stamp Act, 1958 sets the base duty on a conveyance under Article 25. Local laws then add surcharges, and from 1 April 2022 the state resumed a 1% metro cess on sale, gift and mortgage deeds in Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur, after a two-year pause during the pandemic. How Maharashtra compares with other states is in our national stamp duty guide.
| Where the property is | Man | Woman (residential, sole buyer) | Registration fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mumbai (BMC limits) | 6%: 5% duty + 1% metro cess | 5% | 1%, max Rs 30,000 |
| Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Nagpur | 7%: 5% + 1% local body surcharge + 1% metro cess | 6% | 1%, max Rs 30,000 |
| Municipal council areas | About 4% | About 3% | 1%, max Rs 30,000 |
| Gram panchayat areas | About 3%, plus a 1% zilla parishad cess on several readings | 1% less | 1%, max Rs 30,000 |
The first two rows are consistent across every source we read. The last two are not: some guides give 5% for council areas and 4% for villages including surcharges, others 4% and 3% before a separate cess. For a plot outside the corporations, get the figure from the IGR Maharashtra calculator before you agree the budget.
The 1% concession for women
The state announced the concession on 8 March 2021. It applies to residential property only, so a shop or office bought by a woman pays the full rate. It applies where the woman is the sole buyer or buys with other women; several sources say a joint purchase with a male co-owner is charged at the male rate.
The original scheme said a woman who took the concession could not sell the home to a man for 15 years, on pain of repaying the 1% with penalty. That condition was withdrawn with effect from 31 May 2023, and she can now sell to anyone at any time. If you bought with the concession before that date, the restriction no longer applies to you.
Ready reckoner value, and the 2026-27 freeze
The Inspector General of Registration publishes annual statement of rates, the ready reckoner, and the sub-registrar will charge duty on it if your agreement shows less. What a ready reckoner rate is, and how it differs from a guidance value elsewhere, is on guideline value and ready reckoner rate. Area-wise figures are in our Pune ready reckoner rates and Mumbai ready reckoner rates.
On 1 April 2025 rates rose by an average of 4.39% across the state: 3.39% in Mumbai, 4.16% in Pune and 7.72% in Thane, with municipal corporations outside Mumbai up 5.95% on average. For 2026-27 the IGR kept rates at the 2025-26 level, so any quotation built on last year's reckoner still holds until the next notification.
Example: you agree Rs 1.2 crore for a Mumbai flat whose ready reckoner value is Rs 1.3 crore. A man pays 6% of Rs 1.3 crore, which is Rs 7.8 lakh, not Rs 7.2 lakh.
When the agreement already carries full duty
Maharashtra is unusual in taxing the agreement for sale as if it were the conveyance. Explanation I to Article 25 treats an agreement for sale of a flat as a conveyance, so the full duty is collected at that stage and the final conveyance attracts nominal duty. In Ramesh Mishrimal Jain v. Avinash Vishwanath Patne (2025 INSC 213), the Supreme Court confirmed that an agreement to sell under which possession has been or will be handed over must be stamped as a conveyance.
The other side of that rule helps buyers. In Shyamsundar Radheshyam Agrawal v. Pushpabai Nilkanth Patil (2024 INSC 730), the court held that where an agreement concludes in a sale deed, duty is charged on the principal instrument, so you do not pay full duty twice. The legal difference between the two documents is in sale deed vs agreement to sell.
New flat versus resale
With a builder, you pay full duty and the Rs 30,000 fee when the registered agreement is signed, often years before handover; the rate that day is the rate you pay. With a resale flat, the agreement you register with the seller is the transfer itself, charged on the higher of price and ready reckoner value. In a co-operative society, the share transfer follows, but it does not replace the stamped, registered agreement.
Two purchases, costed
Rs 80 lakh new flat in Pune
- Man: 7% is Rs 5,60,000. Registration at 1% would be Rs 80,000 but is capped at Rs 30,000. Total Rs 5,90,000.
- Woman, sole buyer: 6% is Rs 4,80,000 plus Rs 30,000. Total Rs 5,10,000, a saving of Rs 80,000.
Rs 1.5 crore resale flat in Mumbai
- Man: 6% is Rs 9,00,000 plus Rs 30,000. Total Rs 9,30,000.
- Woman, sole buyer: 5% is Rs 7,50,000 plus Rs 30,000. Total Rs 7,80,000.
Below Rs 30 lakh the fee is a straight 1%, so a Rs 25 lakh flat in a municipal council town pays Rs 25,000. Buyers comparing the suburbs will find prices in our Thane market study and Navi Mumbai market study; the percentage is the same in both, so the difference is the base price.
Paying through GRAS and registering
- Calculate duty and fee on the IGR Maharashtra site, using the ready reckoner for the property's zone.
- Pay on GRAS (gras.mahakosh.gov.in): choose to pay without registration, select the option to pay for registering a document, and enter the district, office and amounts. Net banking, UPI, debit card and NEFT are accepted. Note the GRN on the challan.
- GRAS links to the state's e-stamp system, and the receipt is verified electronically at the sub-registrar's office; the e-stamp paper guide explains how Maharashtra's system differs from SHCIL states.
- Book a slot at the sub-registrar's office, and attend with the other party, two witnesses, ID and the documents in our property registration checklist.
- After registration, the Index II extract is your public record of the deal; IGR Maharashtra free search shows how to pull it.
Refunds, amnesties and other traps
- Cancelled deals. Duty on a cancelled agreement is refundable only if you apply within six months of the registered cancellation deed under section 48, extended to two years where a registered agreement fails because the seller will not hand over possession. The Bombay High Court has allowed some late claims, but do not plan on it.
- Understated value. Deficient duty carries a penalty of 2% a month, up to four times the deficit.
- Waiting for an amnesty. The last Abhay Yojana covered documents from 1980 to 2020 and, after four extensions, closed on 31 August 2024. We found no 2026 scheme; do not leave an old unstamped agreement hoping for one.
- Adding a husband to the deed. On a Rs 1.5 crore Mumbai flat, losing the women's rate costs Rs 1.5 lakh.
- Commercial units. The concession does not apply, so a woman buying an office pays the man's rate.
Frequently asked questions
What is the stamp duty for a resale flat in Pune?
A man pays 7% of the higher of the agreed price and the ready reckoner value: 5% duty, 1% local body surcharge and 1% metro cess. A woman buying a home alone pays 6%. Registration is 1% up to Rs 30,000. On a Rs 60 lakh resale flat a man pays Rs 4.2 lakh in duty plus Rs 30,000 in fees.
Is metro cess charged outside Mumbai?
Yes. Since 1 April 2022 the 1% metro cess applies in Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur, on sale, gift and mortgage deeds. It is part of the 6% in Mumbai and the 7% in the other four cities. Towns without a notified metro or major transport project do not carry it.
Can a woman who used the stamp duty concession sell to a man?
Yes. The original 2021 scheme barred a sale to a male buyer for 15 years, but the state removed that condition from 31 May 2023. A woman who bought with the 1% concession, before or after that date, can now sell to anyone without repaying the concession or any penalty.
How much is the registration fee in Maharashtra?
One percent of the property's value, with a ceiling of Rs 30,000. Any home worth more than Rs 30 lakh therefore pays exactly Rs 30,000. Below that, the fee is 1%, so a Rs 20 lakh flat pays Rs 20,000. The fee is separate from stamp duty and is paid through GRAS or at the office.
Do I pay stamp duty again at possession of a new flat?
No. For a builder flat, full duty is collected when the agreement for sale is registered, because Maharashtra treats that agreement as a conveyance. When the builder later executes the conveyance or the society's deed, the duty already paid counts, and only a nominal amount is due. Keep the original agreement and the GRAS receipt safely.
If you are comparing a flat in Mumbai with one in Pune or Thane and want the full cost set out before you sign, Realty Hunting's advisors can work through the numbers with you.
